Why Holden Doesn T Holden Pass As An Adult

Noah Pedrazzoli

Mr. Krajca

English 9 HR

30 March 2017 “The Catcher in the Rye” essay Why Can’t Holden pass as an Adult

Have you ever felt the pressure of Adulthood closing in and felt that you would never fit in as one? Did you ever feel Childish or immature? In J.D Salinger’s novel “The Catcher in the Rye” Holden Caulfield is in the midst of a mental break down because of the pressure of Adulthood. After being expelled from yet another school, Holden Caulfield goes to New York City to experience the “Adult life”, but he just can’t fit in. Some of the reasons Holden isn’t able to pass as an Adult is because of his Innocence and also he just isn’t an adult, he looks

After being beat up by Maurice, Holden calls Sally Hayes and takes her on a date. After they go ice skating, Holden starts to break down and tells Sally Hayes about his future plans. “We’ll stay in these cabin camps and stuff like that when the dough runs out. Then, when the dough does run out, I could get a job somewhere and we could live somewhere with a brook and all and later on, we could get married or something.” Sally Hayes then Practically calls his idea ridiculous and Holden loses it, but what can be taken out of Holden’s ranting is that he can’t pass as an adult is because he is too childish and immature. Holden does not use common sense and proposes ideas before he actually considers them, and that is immature not only the adult world but also in a child’s world. A few hours later, Holden sneaks into his home and talks to Phoebe. When they talk, Phoebe then asks Holden what he likes, Holden says “I like Allie….Allie’s dead-you always say that! If somebody’s dead and everything and in heaven, then it isn’t really.” Holden’s response shows that Holden is too stuck in the past which shows that he doesn’t want to grow up. Throughout the novel, Holden tries to fit into the adult world but always fails. Holden is too stuck in the past and doesn’t want to change. Holden is so fixed on

At an estimated guess of three in the morning, Holden calls Faith Cavendish, a prostitute. Holden calls her and tries to pretend as an adult but Faith sees through his disguise. “What’s your name, anyhow, may I ask?......You sound a little on the young side. I laughed. Thank you for the compliment….Holden Caulfield is my name. I should’ve given her a phony name, but i didn't think about it.” One of Holden’s problems as passing as an adult is that he isn't one. Adults can easily see through his disguise because of his voice or just by looking at him, example: The bartender at the Lavender room quickly took a glance at Holden and knew that he was under 21. When Holden meets up with Phoebe, he takes her out to a carousel in central park. When Phoebe get onto the Horse and tries to the ring, Holden fears that she will fall. “All the kids kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and I was sort of afraid that she’d fall off the goddamn horse.” This passage proves that Holden fails to be an adult because he refuses to be one. He believes in a fantasy that he will be able to save children from the evils of Adulthood. But he doesn’t understand that he has to let go, he needs to let Phoebe and other kids grow up so he can grow up himself. Holden’s weekend in New York City shows the reader Holden’s attempts of joining the